The iPad 3 is a little fatter than the iPad 2, but hides it well. Photo MIC Gadget/Flickr

With just weeks to go before the iPad 3 launch, the drip of hardware leaks is turning into a torrent. The latest — and probably best — photos of the new iPad’s case come from MIC Gadget, and show the new tablet to be a little thicker, and sporting a larger camera lens.

Just yesterday our own Killian Bell showed us the new case design, and here we have some startlingly good pictures showing it alongside the iPad 2. If real (and I suspect they are) they show that the new iPad is a little fatter, but with tapered edges hiding the extra bulk like a well tailored suit hides a bank manager’s girth.

Here the angle exaggerates the difference. Photo MIC Gadget

Notable also is the larger lens over the camera, likely signaling some kind of upgrade. The larger lens doesn’t necessarily mean more megapixels, but I’d be shocked (shocked!) if the iPad 3 keeps the same awful camera shoehorned into the iPad 2 as an afterthought. If nothing else, it’ll need to have 3.1 megapixels just to make images that are 1:1 with the expected 2048×1536 retina display.

Along with the pictures of the new iPad’s internals, it seems that the body is bulking up in order to hold a bigger battery. Hey, those retina displays need a lot of juice, you know.

If it’s true, it sucks. They didn’t have to expand that much the iPhone 4.

ex_spy_guy

The i4 doesn’t have 2 batteries, LTE, NFC, 4xCores etc like this does (allegedly)

ex_spy_guy

The i4 doesn’t have 2 batteries, LTE, NFC, 4xCores etc like this does (allegedly)

creativesouth

A little fatter is ok with me as long as it comes with a better camera and more juice.

Cold_dead_fingers

Doesn’t even look much fatter.

Deranger86

Samsung needs to update their Galaxy Tabs to a bit thicker now cos well…

“Apple made it thicker”

ddevito

That’s awful. Since when does Apple release a fatter product than its predecessor?

Uh oh. The first mobile product in the post-Steve Jobs era and it’s all going to sh1t.

Harvey Lubin

Take a closer look. The iPad 3 is actually the same thickness as the iPad 2.

In the bottom photo you can see that the iPad 2 looks thinner because the aluminum body looks shorter than the iPad 3. But notice that the glass on the iPad 2 is much higher above the top edge of the body than it is on the iPad 3.

The overall thickness is the same for both iPads.

I think the idea of having the glass better protected (less exposed) is an improvement!

baby_Twitty

Samsucks larger phones are illusional tricks. Those ‘larger’ screens actually have less ppi than the iPhone 4.

Place the phones side by side showing a same HD picture, iPhone 4 screen still displays the finest quality.

My $ is ready now for iPad 3.

baby_Twitty

You must be blind. The iPhone 3G/3Gs all have tapered back. The iPhone 4 doesn’t. Coz more stuffs are packed in, they ditched the taper-back design for iPhone 4/4S

Mike Rathjen

The picture compares a complete iPad 2 and nothing but a shell for the iPad 3. So we don’t know anything about how much the glass will protrude on the 3.

Brockwaydubois

If it’s thicker, then you know it’s heavier too.

Sean Bauer

I played with one of those Samsung Notes today at the AT&T store. What a joke, I wouldn’t be caught dead holding that brick to my ear. IT IS HUGE FOR A FREAKING PHONE!!!

iPhoneiBlog

When will the iPad 3 be released?

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Charlie Sorrel is the Reviews Editor here on Cult of Mac. Follow Charlie on Twitter at @mistercharlie.

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